Get started We re going to show you how to create a Shutterfly photo book. It s fun, easy, and can be completed in just a few steps. To begin, sign in to your Shutterfly account. (If you don t already have one, click Sign up at the top of the page.) Click the Store tab and select the Photo Books link in the middle of the page. (Figure 1) Figure 1 Get started by choosing a book size. You may also shop by occasion where different background choices are grouped into styles that match the occasion. (Figure 2) Figure 2 1
Shop by book size Shutterfly offers five different sizes for your photo book: 5X7, 7X9, 8X11, 8X8 and 12X12. To learn more about each size, click Compare Photo Books. (Figures 3 & 4) Figure 3 Figure 4 Once you ve selected a size, click the Get started button to begin filling your book. You may need to choose the cover type before you proceed you can always change it later during the editing process. (Figure 5) Figure 5 2
Shop by occasion If you prefer to shop by occasion, we provide several design choices, including seasonal events like Christmas and Mother s Day, milestones including baby or wedding, and interests, such as sports or travel. If you don t see what you re looking for, click the See all occasions link at the bottom of the column for the complete list. (Figure 6) Figure 6 Once you ve chosen an occasion, select a book size and cover type, where applicable, from the pulldown menus on the right. The cover type can be changed later in the editing process. (For certain occasions, such as a pre-designed Creating Keepsakes photo book, the book size options may be limited.) Then click Get started. (Figure 7) Figure 7 There are four steps to making a photo book: Style, Pages, Cover and Preview. You can get to each step by clicking on the bar at the top of every page in the photo book workspace. While we recommend that you follow a linear process when making a photo book, you can always move back and forth among these steps at any time in the process. (Figure 8) Figure 8 3
At this point, you ll want to name and save your project so if you take a break you can pick up right where you left off. Click the Save button on the upper-right and name your book and then click Save in the dialog box. You ll find your saved book in My projects under the My Shutterfly tab. (Figure 9) Figure 9 Start by choosing your book style. Using the Styles tab on the left of the page, click each background to see how it ll look in the book. Select the one you wish to use and choose your text (font type, size and color) and photo edges. The selections you make on the Style tab will set the backgrounds, layouts, edges and fonts for all the pages of your book. You can also customize these options for any individual page from the Pages tab except in the case of pre-designed occasions such as Family Reunion and Creating Keepsakes. (Figure 10) Figure 10 When you re ready to get pictures for your book, click the Next button at top-right. 4
Get pictures The Pages step is the heart of the photo-book-making process, where you add pictures and build each page by selecting and placing images, choosing a background design, and adding any text. Start by clicking the Get Pictures button in the middle of the page to add photos from your Shutterfly account. If you have pictures sitting on your computer s hard drive or in your camera s memory card, you ll need to upload them to your Shutterfly account first. (Figure 11) Figure 11 On the Collect pictures page, choose entire albums or specific pictures to be included in your book. For a regular photo book, collecting 30-50 pictures is a good start, and you can fit up to 1000 pictures on 101 pages. Add entire albums by selecting them from the folder view or add individual pictures by selecting them from the album view. When you ve finished selecting pictures, click the Add to Photo Book button at the top right. You ll be asked whether you d like to add any additional pictures to your book. If you click Yes, choose more albums or pictures, and click Add to Photobook again when you re finally done collecting and ready to start creating. (Figure 12) Figure 12 Your selected pictures will now appear. Add more images to this workspace at any time by clicking the Get more pictures button above the thumbnails. (Figure 13) Figure 13 5
Before you fill the pages of your photo book with pictures, take a moment to look over the pictures you ve collected. Which ones do you want to use and how might you use them to tell a story? Would a timeline be most effective? Perhaps groupings of people, places, or subjects? Also consider which pictures would look best alone on a page, and which ones might look better as part of a group. Click Organize pictures above the thumbnails to sort the pictures by date taken, by order added to project, by upload order or by name. You can also rotate them to the correct orientation, hover over them for a magnified view, and use the Remove link to eliminate duplicate or less flattering shots. When you ve finished, click Done at top-right to begin building your book s pages. (Figure 14) Figure 14 Build your book s pages Before you start building your book s pages, take some time to get oriented with the different features and commands of the photo book workspace: (Figure 15) 1: The picture strip at the bottom contains all the available images for placement in your book. Navigate using the scroll bar and (if applicable) pulldown menu, or hover over any thumbnail image with your mouse for a closer look. Uncheck the hide used box to see all the images, including any that have been placed on a page. 2: The two-page spread in the center is where you drop pictures and enter text for the pages shown. You ll notice that whatever page you re working on is active and highlighted by an orange stroke around the outside edge. 3: The palette, on the left, is where you can change the layout, background and picture edge for each page. 4: Enlarge the highlighted page using the zoom link in the upper-right corner. 5: Turn to another page by using the two arrow buttons at the top right or mousing over the page strip at the top-center. 6: Add pages, delete pages and arrange pages using the buttons in the top left. Figure 15 6
Create pages using Storyboard If you have a lot of pictures, the Storyboard tool quickly organizes and groups them on the pages of your photo book. To use it, click the Storyboard icon it s the one with the arrow in the upper-right corner. To fill each page in your book, simply drag pictures on the left to pages on the right. We ll find a layout that fits each group of pictures for each page. When you re finished with all pages, click Done to return to the Pages tab. You can change the background or layout for an individual page using the options on the palette if you wish to do so. (Figures 16 & 17) Figure 16 Figure 17 Place pictures You can customize your photo book by placing pictures on the pages yourself. To do so, simply drag a photo from the picture strip and drop it onto a picture box, one of the gray boxes on the spread that reads Drop picture here. You can place up to 16 pictures on every page except for the Title page and the covers. (Figure 18) Figure 18 7
If you want to swap the placement of pictures within a page, just drag one picture from one box to the other. The two pictures automatically switch. (Figures 19 & 20) Figure 19 Figure 20 To add more pictures to a page with no empty picture boxes, simply drag from the picture strip to the background of the page and drop. You ll notice that the page outline turns red and the cursor changes to a green plus sign. A new layout will be automatically chosen to accommodate your pictures. (Figures 21 & 22) Figure 21 Figure 22 8
You can pick a different page layout if you d like there are many to choose from. To do this, click the Layouts tab on the palette. Select from layouts for 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 or more pictures, or choose Text for layout options with no picture boxes. Select Undo layout above the active page to return to the previous version. (Figure 23) Figure 23 As you place pictures, you ll notice that they disappear from the picture strip; if you d like a picture to appear more than once in your book, simply unclick the Hide used box. (Figure 24) Once you re finished adding pictures to a page, move to the next spread and continue filling your photo book. Figure 24 Edit pictures To edit any picture you ve placed on a page, click on the picture to launch the Edit picture pop-up window. Here you can rotate, crop, fix red eye and apply effects. To change the crop size, drag the corner handles. Drag the center of the box to move the crop area. If the resolution of your image as cropped is too low, it won t print well. (If that s the case, a warning icon will appear.) Once you re finished with your edits, click Done to return to Pages. (Figure 25) Figure 25 9
Change backgrounds and picture edges Use the palette to change the background or picture edge for any page. Click the Backgrounds tab to choose from hundreds of designs using the scroll bar and the pulldown menu. Click the Edges tab to select from dozens of options. If you find a specific background or edge that you d like to apply across the entire book, select the Apply to all pages link at the bottom of the palette. (Figure 26) Figure 26 Add text To add text to your pages, click on any box that reads Enter caption here. An Edit text pop-up window will appear. Enter a caption and choose the font type, size, alignment and color of your text. To prevent typos in your finished book, we automatically run a spell-check on what you write and alert you to any misspelled words. Otherwise, be proactive by clicking the Check spelling link. Click the Preview button to see how your text will look, then click Done when you re finished. (Figure 27) It s not necessary to fill a text box if you don t want to leave it blank and the box won t appear in the final printed book. To get a quick look at how the page will look printed, click the Zoom button in the upper right. Figure 27 Add, delete, or arrange pages Shutterfly photo books are a minimum of 20 pages in length, but you can add up to 81 more for a total of 101 pages. To add or delete pages, use the buttons in the upper-left corner. Arrange pages provides a thumbnail view of all the pages in your book. To adjust the flow of your story, drag and drop the page thumbnails to rearrange them, and then click Done to return to Pages. (Figures 28 & 29) Figure 28 When you re done building your pages and ready to choose a cover for your photo book, click the Next button at top-right. Figure 29 10
Create a cover The Cover step is where you design the cover for your photo book. If you ve selected a 5x7, 8x11, 8x8 or 12x12 book, you can change your original cover choice now by clicking the Cover Type pulldown menu above the palette. If you ve selected a photo cover, choose the pictures, layout, background and edges to use for the front and back covers as well as the spine. As you do when building pages, drag pictures from the picture strip and drop them onto the covers and spine. To use a picture that s already been used on another page, uncheck the Hide used checkbox above the picture strip. You can also add a title to the covers and spine of certain photo books by clicking on the text boxes. (Figure 30) Figure 30 If you select a leather or fabric cover, the cover window will showcase the picture on your book s title page. Confirm that you like the placement of the title page picture it ll be visible through the cover. (Figure 31) When you re done creating your cover and ready to preview and order, click the Next button at top-right. Figure 31 Preview and order your book Once you ve filled your book s pages and chosen your cover, it s time to double-check everything. The Preview step is where you view your book as a whole, re-read your text and make any last-minute changes before placing your order. (Figure 32) Figure 32 11
To preview, navigate through each page spread using the two arrow buttons at the top of the page. Use the magnifying-glass icon for an enlarged view. To jump to a specific part of the book, roll your mouse over the page strip, and then click on the desired spread. To really experience having the book in your hands, select Play Slideshow in the upper-right. A pop-up window will launch. Navigate using the arrows at the top of the window or the spread thumbnails on the bottom. Return to the main preview window to make any adjustments. (Figures 33 & 34) Figure 33 Figure 34 To share your book with friends and family, click the Share link at top-left to send an email, add the book to your Shutterfly Share site or post it on a social networking site such as Facebook. (Figure 35) Figure 35 To make a copy of your photo book in a different size, click on the copy link at top-left and then review your new book to make sure all pictures and text look okay. (Figure 36) Figure 36 12
Once you re happy with the way everything looks, click Order at the top-right corner of the page. Select the quantity of books to send per recipient and then choose who you d like to receive the book. (Figure 37) Figure 37 On the following page, select the method of shipping and enter any special offers or discounts at the bottom of the page. Lastly, go to the checkout page, choose your form of payment, and click Place my order now. (Figure 38) Once your order has been confirmed, your recipients will receive their book in about a week. If you want to show off your photo book and inspire other Shutterfly customers to create their own, add it to our Gallery. To learn more, see our How to use Shutterfly Gallery tutorial. Figure 38 13